Flame-Retarding Plastics and Elastomers with Melamine

Melamine has shown broad utility as a flame retardant in plastics although its commercial use to date as a flame retardant additive has been principally in coatings and flexible urethane foams. Its mode of action appears to involve endothermic sublimation and vapor-phase dissociation, but it also undergoes conversion to non-volatile products and ammonia. Combinations of melamine with other flame retardants of all types have been reported as hav ing advantageous performance. The present review covers the patent and non- patent literature with 130 references.**